NORTH Melbourne is hopeful ruckman Todd Goldstein will be available to face the Western Bulldogs in round two after scans cleared him of serious shoulder damage on Saturday.
Goldstein injured his left shoulder in Friday night's 39-point loss to Essendon at Etihad Stadium, but he was able to play out the game after being assessed late in the first quarter.
Scans showed no ligament or joint damage and the 25-year-old will have eight days to recover from significant bruising before the Kangaroos face the Bulldogs.
Coach Brad Scott was confident on Friday night that the injury was not serious after the club doctor cleared him to return to the field.
"If the doctor said, 'He's out', he's out … but the doc said, 'He's right to go on'," Scott said post-match.
"I wanted confirmation from 'Goldy' himself that he was right to go and he felt he was.
"So the doc's cleared him and Goldy felt he was right, so hopefully that means it's not too bad."
